Touch It
by Rizzy.and.Izzy
Summary: Jane and Maura want to add something new to their relationship. Talking it out, they're finally able to agree upon what to get. But when Maura brings home something completely different, can Jane be open to it?


They had talked about it for a while. Probably longer than they should have. But Maura wanted them to weigh all sides before making a decision. It was a major step. It was important for them both to be on the same page. She didn't want it to be something they entered into lightly. After all, if they hadn't talked about it so much, Maura would never have known that Jane didn't care what they got so long as it wasn't too large. And Jane would never have known that it was actually a first for Maura, which was probably what increased her anxiety about it.

They decided if they were going to do this, it would have to be a small one. It couldn't be too noisy or too messy. They had consulted more than one guide and talked about every option available to them. On Friday night, they felt like they had talked enough about it, and read enough information about it, to be able to make a concerted purchase. They would go to the store and do just that on Saturday night.

Well, that was the plan anyway.

Coming down the stairs Saturday morning, Jane saw that apparently Maura just could not wait any longer. She had already gone to the store and made the purchase herself. Only she didn't get the one that they had decided upon. All that talking and planning and talking, and she got something they hadn't even discussed. Did she mention there was a lot of talking involved? And after all that, Maura gets this. It wasn't the right size or shape, or color even. And God, it just got worse the closer Jane got to it...

What was once the long, lean gait of a confident detective, was now the tiny baby steps of a person not sure if they wanted to run away or keep walking forward.

Maura, seeing the clearly displeased (and slightly horrified?) look on Jane's face tried to salvage the situation.

"Wait... Just take a minute to look at it before saying anything, Jane."

Hesitantly, Jane slowly walked up closer to it.

"I thought it would be okay if I bought this one instead. What do you think?" Maura never lost the hopeful shine in her eyes that maybe, just maybe it would be okay.

_Is it...? It is!_

"It's a frog, Maura!? What the hell! This is not the puppy we had decided upon when we were picking possible pets!" Too surprised to even acknowledge the alliteration, Jane continues on. "We agreed a puppy would be the best pet to get. It would be both a good watch dog for us and companionship for Jo. We would be able to leave it at home during work hours and it would keep the house safe, and also having Jo here it wouldn't destroy everything because it was left alone. It was the perfect choice." Jane had started to pace, her words coming way too fast for her to stay still.

Maura, knowing that Jane was about to launch into all the reasons why she didn't want to keep it, quickly interrupted Jane's train of thought. "I know this isn't the puppy we decided on, but I just couldn't get over how cute he was in the store. Just look at him Jane. Isn't he cute? Isn't he?"

And as if this somehow proves her point, Maura thrusts the frog in front of Jane's face. Jane is too shocked to do anything but stare at the amphibian now just inches away from her nose. She studies him. He's almost too large for Maura's small hands. She's holding him tight enough to make sure he doesn't jump away, but not enough so that he gets smooshed. This makes him sort of lopsided in her grasp. Jane must admit he does look kind of, a little bit, maybe... _cute_. And funny. But unintentionally funny. Like he has a _just woke up with bed head_ kind of a WTF look to him. He doesn't seem too bothered by it. But still, Jane can't fully bring herself to like him.

While she has the opportunity, while Jane is quiet and simply observing the creature, Maura recounts all the frog related facts that she can remember. Maybe if she catches her off guard, she can get Jane to agree to keep him.

Just as Maura thinks Jane might be warming to the cold blooded Anura in her hands, Jane's gaze turns hard again.

She quickly tries to get Jane to keep her mind open to this. "Please, just give him a chance Jane. If you just look-"

"You do know know they used to tease me and call me that, right. You do remember that, right?" Jane was incensed.

"Yes, I do remember you telling me that. And while that's an unfortunate coincidence, I thought that maybe if you got to know him, you'd feel differently. You could learn to like him and then the nickname wouldn't hold the same meaning for you. I understand your aversion to frogs, but he could help change your mind about the moniker. I thought he could help replace the bad memories with good memories." Now it seemed to be Maura's turn to stumble over her words.

Blank. Jane's face is completely blank.

Maura finally realizes that him becoming their pet is probably not going to happen. She also realizes that she still has the frog in her hands, outstretched and in front of Jane's face. Before Maura can bring the frog back down, and closer to herself again, he suddenly sticks his tongue out at Jane, just barely missing her chin. Definitely one fact Maura forgot to mention. He has one long tongue!

"Ewwww...!" All that Jane can manage to say, while running away and towards the bathroom.

And that is how a decorated Boston detective finds herself locked in her own bathroom, of her own volition. All she had wanted was a relatively peaceful weekend, but she was quickly coming to terms with the fact that that was not to be.

Running after Jane, Maura doesn't have the time to put the frog down. So both she and the frog are waiting in front of the bathroom door for a certain detective to come out.

None too pleased to be talking to a door, Maura states curtly, "Come on out, Jane. You know he didn't mean anything by it."

There's no response from behind the door. Nothing. Except for maybe a sigh, or a grunt. It's too muffled for Maura to be sure. But it's enough for her to know Jane is probably not going to be coming out any time soon.

About ten minutes go by and she's pretty sure Jane would be content to stay in the bathroom all night if it meant she didn't have to see the frog again.

By now Maura is sitting down, with her back to the door and her legs crossed underneath her like she's meditating. She's studying the frog the same way Jane had been earlier. Before the whole incident that caused them to be where they are.

Through the door, Jane can hear her ramble off even more fun facts about how frogs are apparently cuter than daisies and unicorns, babies, rainbows and butterflies, and oh God let's just have them raining down on us because they are all just so cute.

Maybe to the frog, maybe to herself, maybe to no one in particular, Maura whispers, "If she could only see you how I see you. Time to level the playing field..."

Jane only hears maybe half of what Maura is saying, choosing to filter out the rest. Until three small words come into stark focus among the myriad Maura has mentioned.

Jane can't hear anything past those three small words, said in an even smaller voice.

"Maura the moron..."

Jane strains behind the bathroom door to hear her.

"That's what they would call me, in addition to Maura the bore-a..."

Jane is standing now, hand gripping the door knob. She can't leave the bathroom fast enough.

They speak one after the other, Maura only slightly ahead of Jane. "Maura the moron." "God damn kids."

"That doesn't even make any God damn sense." Jane could never contain her emotions when Maura talked about how schoolyard bullies had taunted her.

"It was factually inaccurate, yes. But I think it was the alliterative nature of the words that made them choose it."

And it was right then that Jane knew. She might not like that frog in Maura's lap, indeed she might actually hate it, but she loves Maura. And if Maura wants that frog, then so does Jane.

"Friggin' kids... Bunch of bullies... Lucky they didn't know me then." Jane mumbles to herself while she leans down to sit next to Maura. She sits with her legs out in front of her. She's never been flexible enough to sit in those meditating yoga poses like Maura.

Trying to change the subject, Maura brings the frog from where she was holding him in her lap, up to her chest. She is determined to get Jane to like this frog. In a voice still too quiet for Jane's liking, Maura says, "He _is_ cute..." Pleading. "_Isn't_ he, Jane?" Unsteady, unsure.

There's only one thing worse than Maura's puppy dog eyes, it's when her eyes are honestly sad. When it's not a sly ploy to get what she wants, but when she's really sad.

Maura looks at her, and Jane breaks a little.

Jane shifts even closer to Maura. She assesses the frog one last time, "Maybe we can keep him... So long as he doesn't try to eat Bass, or Watson."

The frown that had at some point made a home on Maura's face slowly fades, although a smile doesn't yet take it's place . "Frogs don't eat tortoises Jane, so I think Bass and Watson are safe."

Jane raises her eyebrows and cocks her head. Her face responding with a silent _whatever_ and _really_ all at once. "Yeah, well, you didn't see him from my position. That tongue could do some damage!"

Any trace of a frown is fully gone, and Maura is all smiles again.

Maura, feeling a little more confident that Jane won't go running back into the bathroom again, takes Jane's right hand into her left hand. Maura grips it tighter, and brings it closer to her, restricting Jane's movements just a bit. With Maura's right hand still holding the frog, she gradually brings Jane's hand closer to her. Jane realizes what Maura is trying to get her to do. As Jane's hand is as close to the frog as it's ever been, Maura looks at Jane with an all too knowing grin on her face and whispers to her, "Touch him. You know you want to."

"Maura!" Jane feigns disgust, and pulls her hand away playfully.

Jane gives a dirty look to the frog. It's kind of like high noon in the Old West, whoever moves first gets it.

Jane, assessing the frog once again, taking in whether he really is friend or foe. Should she try to pet him? She owes Maura that much at least.

Jane studies the frog. Maura studies Jane. They all stay like this for quite a few minutes.

Maura, seeing the trying and the caring in Jane's eyes, can't help but be moved to break the silence.

"I love you, Jane." Simple. Easy. Jane's eyes soften, her whole face is aglow. And inside Maura glows too. It's like the force of Jane's smile is what pushes the air into Maura's lungs and she breathes her instead of oxygen. Simple. Easy.

The moment's not lost on Jane either. "I love you too, Maura." It's all she can say.

But after a beat, the old Rizzoli returns, "...but I'm not gonna touch him." Followed by her own sly grin.

"No, I mean I love you. No matter what anyone called you, bullies or otherwise. I don't think this frog is ugly, and I would like to keep him. I want him here. And I want you here with him. While I don't think you have a frog face at all, I'd still love you even if you did. You'd be _my_ frog face and I'd still want you."

"I don't think I've ever heard you ramble before, Maura." It's not what she wants to say, but it's all she can get out.

"I had nothing to ramble about, before." A short pause. Jane doesn't say anything, feeling Maura is not quite done speaking.

"I wanted to go early and get the puppy to surprise you, Jane. I really did. But then I saw a display full of-" she holds up the frog, once again in front of Jane's face "-these cute little guys and I just couldn't resist."

Maura begins to say everything she wanted to say earlier, when all that would come out were frog facts.

"The store clerk came over and asked if I would like one. I asked if they had any females. He said they only had males, none of the female variety. I just, I wanted you to see. He's cute." Cute, Maura's word of the day, it seems. "It's not a bad nickname. Not to me. You're MY frogface. And I love you."

Still not missing the importance of the moment, Jane replies, "I love you too, Maura. And you're not boring. I wouldn't care if you were. And you're not a moron either, but you know that."

"I know that... " But the silence that ascends just a little to quickly for Jane's liking, tells her that while Maura knows this, it's still something she needs to hear.

"And I'll always remind you of that. Heck, I don't know where I'd be without my Walking-Wiki.."

Jane waits for the recognition...

That never comes.

"Like Wikipedia... No?"

Maura just shrugs her shoulders and nods her head. _No._

Jane rolls her eyes and sticks her hand out.

Maura just looks at Jane's hand.

Jane nudges Maura's shoulder with her elbow, raising the hand a little bit higher towards Maura.

"I believe you wanted me to-" She can't believe she's going to say it. "-touch something."

"Ooh, Jane. Thank you." Maura's face is damn near beaming. She takes Jane's hand and touches it gently to the frog's back.

Okay, it's not entirely unpleasant. But definitely not something she wants to repeat. "I guess I should get used to it. Since, you know, it's going to be our new... pet."

It's hard for Jane to say it, pulling a face on the last word, but the smile on Maura's face is worth it.

"Jane?"

"Yes, Maura?" She'd pretty much say yes to anything at this point.

Maura smiles again and asks, "Can we call him Kermit?"

Jane scoffs. Okay maybe not everything...

"Sure. But if he tries to kiss me again, I'm gonna turn him into some fancy French dinner! I only kiss humans, of the _female variety_. And only one, at that.

"Oh, is that true, and who would that lucky one be?" Now Maura's trying to be cute, and succeeding.

"You know perfectly well who."

Maura just shakes her head _no_ again, goading the detective on. Fully aware, and barely able to hold back a grin.

Giving in, Jane quickly answers "The Maura Isles one, of course."

And to prove her point, Jane leans over and kisses Maura.

She could never deny this woman anything, nor would she ever want to. If Maura wants to try to change the way she feels about frogs, so be it.

Always a sucker for the last word, Jane pulls away from the kiss and lets one sentence slip from her lips, before putting them back on Maura's again.

"You can keep the frog, but I still want my puppy."

* * *

Update: I'm almost done writing a chapter two for this, which will be K+ rated. So I've taken the swears out of this chapter and have moved it into the K+ rating as well. I know that the first part of this story implies M, but that was part of the fun for me, for writing it. If anyone thinks I should move it back to T let me know.


End file.
